Karen Walker
The power of one. Cool as a cucumber. Karen Walker likes to test everyone, and we mean everyone, which explains why she sits here in opposition to herself. Take no prisoners. By Alison Veness. Styled by Philippa Moroney. Photographed by Hugh Stewart.
We are sitting in the St George Leagues Club, Kogarah, because this is where true chess club aficionados meet to battle it out. This is the kind of cerebral heaven that Karen Walker relishes, so pawn takes pawn, queen takes knight. Strategy. And it has just the right amount of down-to-earth quirkiness – all this functional Formica and no-nonsense decor. Walker, on the left, is savouring the moment. Arms folded, she’s ready for her next move, although she has already conquered much of the world – 42 countries in fact – with her namesake label, since it started nearly 30 years ago in Auckland. Walker, on the right, is also wearing a typically masculine suit, a signature play on gender. She seems perhaps a little nerdier wearing her Karen Walker eyewear, but don’t be fooled: she is only a few moves away from checkmate. And while contemplating her victory she is thinking through ideas for new collaborations, running through names of artists, and maybe trying out new super-charged descriptions for her designs. Her words make us smile. Wryly. Walker’s world is one of conviction, passion, and at the heart of it all lies an unerring optimism. She will beat herself and win. The endgame. She is a machine.